Page 170 - Hospital Authority Convention 2018

Masterclasses
HOSPITAL AUTHORITY CONVENTION 2018

M13.4 Advances in Intensive Care 13:15 Convention Hall A

Designing a Modern Intensive Care Unit – from an Architect’s Perspective
Yam M
Simon Kwan & Associates Limited, Hong Kong
A primary objective of an Intensive Care Unit (ICU) design is to provide an optimal environment for healing, and an efficient
and cost effective workplace.
Design guidelines provide a minimum prescriptive guidance for design requirements. Whilst this is important, enhanced
department performance considerations are essential for a clinical best practice approach to design.
We believe that the physical environments we create and how they perform directly affect the physiology, psychology and
social behaviours of those experience it, including:
• Patients – good healing environments will reduce the length of stay and improve outcomes
• Staff – an effective workplace will reduce medical errors, improve retention and efficiency
• Visitors – a supportive environment will encourage attendance and increase social support for patients.

The new ICU at Kwong Wah Hospital (KWH) is an example of modern healthcare delivery in a supportive and optimal physical
environment. The ICU is located strategically on the 9th floor of a new 17-floor tertiary level hospital. It sits adjacent and has
direct access to the Operating theatres. A dedicated hot lift is located adjacent to the ICU patient entry and connects it with
departments within the hospital, while the Accident and Emergency Department just sits on the ground floor directly below
the ICU. This gives rapid transfer of critically ill patients from other departments to the ICU.

The department consists of an ICU bed area containing 12 beds, including four isolation rooms. It sits with a High
Dependency Unit for effective sharing of resources and support facilities between the departments.
Understanding workflow is critical to creating a clear functional design and locating traffic routes that are clear and direct for
ease of wayfinding.
The KWH ICU department has been planned in four areas:
• The patient care zone
• The clinical support zone
• The Unit support zone
• The family/visitor support zone

Each of these zones shares common considerations:
• Infection control is prioritised, and infection risks minimised through good design principles.
Tuesday, 8 May 2018 • Frequently needed spaces and equipment as close as possible to the site of use.
• Flexibility for changing care practices and technology advances.
• Contained travel distances for different activities.

• Adherence to guidelines and codes, i.e. room sizes, fire exit requirements, travel distances, and smoke compartmentation.

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